Top Samsung Electronics executive acquitted of stock manipulation charges،
According to Seoul Central District Court Chief Judge Park Jung-jae, there was not enough evidence to show that Samsung planned to cause losses to Samsung C&T shareholders and the subsidiary itself. The judge said: “Even if Lee's control has been strengthened, the merger in this case cannot be considered unfair, as long as it serves a reasonable purpose.”
The recently released Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra
In a separate case, Lee was convicted of bribery and other corruption charges in 2017 and sentenced to five years in prison. He was released after less than a year in prison, as an appeals court dismissed several of the charges against him and suspended his sentence. In January 2021, Lee was returned to prison after being convicted by the Seoul High Court of embezzlement and corruption. He was conditionally released in August 2021 and pardoned a year later.
Park Sangin, an economics professor at Seoul National University, said of today's verdict: “It's a totally shocking verdict.” Sangin also said the ruling would “lead to diminishing foreign investors' confidence in the Korean legal system and the strength of the Korean capital market.”